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Energy-Friendly USB Microcontrollers by Silicon Labs

At $0.83 for 10,000-unit quantities

Silicon Labs, Inc. introduced USB-enabled microcontrollers (MCUs).

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EFM32 32-bit MCU portfolio products, the Happy Gecko MCUs are designed to deliver the lowest USB power drain in the industry, enabling longer battery life and energy harvesting applications. Based on the Cortex-M0+ core and low-energy peripherals, the Happy Gecko family simplifies USB connectivity for a wide range of IoT applications including smart metering, home and building automation, alarm and security systems, smart accessories and wearable devices.

Supplier of USB bridge chips and smart interface ICs, Silicon Labs developed the Happy Gecko family to address the rising demand for cost-effective, low-power USB connectivity solutions. With more than three billion USB-enabled devices shipping each year, USB is the fastest growing interface for consumer applications and is gaining significant traction in industrial automation. In today’s IoT world, developers have discovered that adding USB interfaces to portable, battery-powered connected devices can double the application current consumption. Happy Gecko MCUs provide an energy-friendly USB connectivity solution for these power-sensitive IoT applications.

Happy Gecko USB MCUs feature an energy management system with five energy modes enabling applications to remain in an energy-optimal state by spending as little time as possible in active mode. In deep-sleep mode, Happy Gecko MCUs have an industry-leading 0.9μ. A standby current consumption (with a 32.768 kHz RTC, RAM/CPU state retention, brown-out detector and power-on-reset circuitry active). Active-mode power consumption drops down to 130µA/MHz at 24 MHz with real-world code (prime number algorithm). The USB MCUs further reduce power consumption with a 2-microsecond wakeup time from standby mode.

Like all EFM32 MCUs, the Happy Gecko family includes the Peripheral Reflex System (PRS) feature, which enhances overall energy efficiency. The six-channel PRS monitors complex system-level events and allows different MCU peripherals to communicate autonomously with each other without CPU intervention. The PRS watches for specific events to occur before waking the CPU, thereby keeping the Cortex-M0+ core in an energy-saving standby mode as long as possible, reducing system power consumption and extending battery life.

EFM32 MCU

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Happy Gecko MCUs feature many of the same low-energy precision analog peripherals included in other popular EFM32 devices. These low-energy peripherals include an analog comparator, supply voltage comparator, on-chip temperature sensor, programmable current digital-to-analog converter (IDAC), and a 12-bit analog-to-digital converter (ADC) with 350μ. A current consumption at a 1 MHz sample rate. On-chip AES encryption enables the secure deployment of wireless connectivity for IoT applications such as smart meters and wireless sensor networks.

The Happy Gecko family’s single-die integration enables developers to reduce component count and bill-of-materials cost. While typical USB connectivity alternatives require external components such as crystals and regulators, the highly integrated Happy Gecko MCUs eliminate nearly all of these discretes with a crystal-less architecture featuring a full-speed USB PHY, an on-chip regulator and resistors. Happy Gecko MCUs are available in a choice of space-saving QFN, QFP and chip-scale package (CSP) options small enough for use in USB connectors and thin-form-factor wearable designs.

“Happy Gecko MCUs bring the benefits of Silicon Labs’ energy-friendly EFM32 architecture to developers seeking an economical, plug-and-play solution for adding USB connectivity to their battery-powered IoT applications,” said Daniel Cooley, VP and GM, MCU and wireless products, Silicon Labs. “The combination of Happy Gecko USB MCUs and our Simplicity Studio development environment enables system designers to connect their 32-bit applications to virtually anything with the lowest energy consumption and BOM cost.

Simplifying USB design
Happy Gecko family is supported by company’ Simplicity Studio development platform, which helps developers simplify low-energy design. The Simplicity Energy Profiler enables real-time energy profiling and debugging of code. The Simplicity Battery Estimator calculates expected battery life based on an application profile, energy modes and peripherals in use. The Simplicity Configurator provides a visual interface for MCU pin configuration, automatically generating initialization code. Code developed for other EFM32 MCUs can be reused with Happy Gecko applications. Developers can download Simplicity Studio and access company’ USB source code and software examples at no charge.

To help developers move rapidly from design idea to final product, Happy Gecko family is supported by the ARM mbed ecosystem, which includes new power management APIs developed by Silicon Labs and ARM. These low-power mbed APIs are designed with low-energy application scenarios in mind, enabling rapid prototyping for energy-constrained IoT designs. ARM mbed APIs running on EFM32 MCUs automatically enable the optimal sleep mode based on the MCU peripherals in use, dramatically reducing system-level energy consumption. Happy Gecko starter kit supports ARM mbed right out of the box. Silicon Labs has also launched mbed API support for Leopard, Giant, Wonder and Zero Gecko MCUs. For additional ARM mbed information including access to link.

Happy Gecko family includes 20 MCU devices providing an array of memory, package and peripheral options, as well as pin and software compatibility with company’ entire EFM32 MCU portfolio. Samples and production quantities of Happy Gecko MCUs are available in 24-pin and 32-pin QFN, 48-pin QFP and 3 mm x 2.9 mm CSP packages. Happy Gecko MCU pricing in 10,000-unit quantities begins at $0.83 (USD). The Happy Gecko SLSTK3400A starter kit is available and priced at $29 (USD MSRP).

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